We had a reputable antique dealer come over to look around. He said: "Yeah, all this has a value, but none of it is worth a lot. I have a barn full of stuff like this".
So many people hold onto things because they're sure their kids will want them. Newsflash: the kids don't want them.
+1
Sad but true reality. I sometimes enjoy looking through old, handwritten letters and postcards saved by my great-grandmother—some dating back to the early 1900s—but have little to no interest in things she thought would be valued by her descendants. Stuff like fine china, antique decorative items, collectibles, etc. The sad truth is that 99% of the stuff (aka, clutter) you personally value and hang onto will be discarded like rubbish by your heirs.
I'm 50 and a lot of people my age and younger don't have fine China. I have never owned any. I'm sure I'll inherit my mom's but I don't have anywhere to store extra dishes. I'll probably donate my own inexpensive dishes and use hers for every occasion. I don't want to store dishes I won't use often.
My dad had some antique furniture and dishes. When he was in his 80's he took them to a consignment auction and told DB and I that we could bid on them since he didn't want us fighting over them when he was gone. If we wanted anything we could bid on them just like anyone else and whoever wanted it the most could buy it. He thought that was the fairest way to divide up his stuff.
I guess that told me that it wasn't very important to keep those things in the family. To me, the fact he's put these items on a public auction told me how important it was to keep them in the family.
Neither of us even went to the auction and the items didn't sell for enough to pay for his gas to haul them there.
I just sent a quote request to Replacements LTD to see what they will pay for my Waterford crystal. The also but chins and silverware.
Then you get to wash the fine china by hand. Which is why many folks don't want the old stuff.I'm 50 and a lot of people my age and younger don't have fine China. I have never owned any. I'm sure I'll inherit my mom's but I don't have anywhere to store extra dishes. I'll probably donate my own inexpensive dishes and use hers for every occasion. I don't want to store dishes I won't use often.
Thankfully DW has been giving away her "investment" in beanie babies. Two tubs worth .
At least the grandkids are enjoying them
And it probably chips or breaks more easily.Then you get to wash the fine china by hand. Which is why many folks don't want the old stuff.
I just sent a quote request to Replacements LTD to see what they will pay for my Waterford crystal. The also but chins and silverware.
I'm 50 and a lot of people my age and younger don't have fine China. I have never owned any. I'm sure I'll inherit my mom's but I don't have anywhere to store extra dishes. I'll probably donate my own inexpensive dishes and use hers for every occasion. I don't want to store dishes I won't use often.
I am not washing it by hand. Period. If it breaks, it breaks.Then you get to wash the fine china by hand. Which is why many folks don't want the old stuff.
I've sold a bunch of old china to Replacements.
Since they are not that far from me, I drove there to save shipping costs.
I was a bit surprised that when I got there they had to evaluate each piece in person, and that took a few hours. Their final appraisal was noticeably lower than what they quoted me online, and they downgraded some pieces for "flaws" that I could not see.
Still, it was better than nothing and I got more than the cost of the gas to drive there and back.
I am not washing it by hand. Period. If it breaks, it breaks.